Bryan Price can see both sides. Affixed to his name as manager of the Cincinnati Reds for the last four years is a 266-357 record. The last three seasons, the Reds have been one of the worst teams in baseball.

Yet, the team picked up the option on his contract to manage the team in 2018, as The Enquirer was first to report Saturday. On a certain level, it was an acknowledgement by the front office that rebuilding teams are not supposed to run good records, and that Price hasn’t been given exactly the best pieces with which to work.

So Price will be back next season, and placed in the same situation in which he’s found himself the last two years. He’ll essentially be managing on a one-year deal, looking to prove again that he’s worthy of staying in the manager’s office longer.

No manager would turn down long-term security, but Price feels his situation is fair.

“You should get what you’ve earned,” Price said. “Since I’ve been the manager here, we haven’t been real competitive. That shouldn’t put me on sound footing as the manager.”

At least in 2018, the Reds expect to take meaningful steps forward. The team’s core of position players has excelled offensively and defensively, and looks ready to compete now. The question has been starting pitching, and recently the team has enjoyed strong runs from rookies Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle, Robert Stephenson and Sal Romano.

The Reds also hope for returns to full health from Anthony DeSclafani and Brandon Finnegan to bolster a young rotation with some experience.

“If we go to the playoffs and make huge adjustments, I think that would be reflected in a contract, just as it would for a player who went out and had some consistently good seasons,” Price said. “But it’s the last thing I’m going to worry about, the contract. Because at the All-Star break in 2015, I think the baseball community had me out of here. And I’m still here.”

Price was told in July he’d be returning. In an emailed statement, Reds general manager Dick Williams said that "exercising the option in the middle of the year was the right thing to do in order to allow the manager and his staff to remain focused on long-term goals."

“Our organization understands that rebuilding is difficult and often unpredictable," the statement continued. "This year, the challenges we faced were once again magnified by significant injuries to the starting pitching."

Price did say that a good working relationship with Williams was a big factor in his return. The Reds manager said he and the GM have become “somewhat in lockstep” with how they view the best way forward for the team, including how to handle promotions and playing young players while also trying to win games.

And if Price finds himself in the same situation a year from now, he’s had more than enough practice on how to handle it. For years, he's taught what might as well be a pitching version of the Serenity Prayer – control what you can, and let go of the rest.

“I’ve preached it for a long time, but I finally had to take some of my own advice,” Price said. “I’ve got to just do my job. If I keep it, if I don’t, that’s in the hands of somebody else.”